Presence Of NaNO3 Research Articles

Sorption and desorption performance of La3+/Bi3+ by surface-modified activated carbon for potential application in medical 225Ac/213Bi generators

213Bi is a promising candidate for targeted alpha therapy.However, the search for suitable materials to separate clinically relevant activities of 213Bi from its parent 225Ac remains an ongoing yet critical challenge. This study evaluates sulfonated Norit CA1 (activated carbon) materials (SNCAs) as alternative sorbents for use in 225Ac/213Bi radionuclide generators and gives an overview of their simultaneous sorption/desorption performance towards La3+ and Bi3+. The SNCAs exhibit high and selective uptake of Bi3+ in the presence of NaNO3 at low pH values. In contrast, the sorption performance for La3+ (which was certified as a non-radioactive surrogate for 225Ac3+) onto SNCAs was more sensitive to the salt concentrations and pH values. The desorption results show that an efficient elution of Bi3+ from SNCAs is achieved using HCl, NaI or NaCl solutions. The experimental sorption data are analysed by various kinetic and isotherm models. The SNCAs exhibit high radiolytic stability, fast sorption kinetics, good durability and recyclability for La3+/Bi3+. This research indicates that SNCAs with sufficient oxygen-containing groups are promising sorbents for the separation of 213Bi in an inverse 225Ac/213Bi radionuclide generator.

Enhanced vector transport of microplastics-bound lead ions in organic matter rich water

ABSTRACT Microplastics act as a vector for toxic trace metals and their surface complexation mechanisms under different environmental conditions are poorly understood. The present study evaluates the interaction mechanisms of pristine and aged polyethylene (PE) microplastics with Pb2+ in water environments in the presence of NaNO3 and humic acid (HA). The influence of pH, contact time, and concentration of Pb2+ on the sorption performances of PE microplastics have also been examined at different ionic strengths (0.001–0.1 M NaNO3), pH (2–9), reaction time (48 h), Pb2+ loading concentrations (1–25 mg L−1), and HA concentrations (0.5–2.5 mg L−1). The Pb2+ adsorption onto both pristine and aged microplastic showed a gradual increase with increasing pH, reaching maximum adsorption at around pH 5–6. Adsorption of Pb2+ onto both PE microplastics decreased at higher ionic strengths and increased at higher HA concentrations suggesting the possible hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions between microplastics and Pb2+ ions. Adsorption kinetic data for pristine PE microplastics were well described by fractional power model indicating time-dependent adsorption, whereas aged PE showed rate-limiting chemisorption by fitting with a pseudo-second-order kinetic model. Isotherm equilibrium data for pristine PE microplastics fitted well for the Freundlich model implying favourable physisorption on the heterogeneous surfaces. Both Hill and Freundlich models were the best-fitted models for aged PE microplastics suggesting the involvement of cooperative multilayer physisorption. Desorption of PE microplastics-bound Pb2+ was greatly influenced by the solution pH. The ascertaining facts elucidated the vector potential of PE microplastics for Pb2+, impacting their migration and destination in water systems where the adsorption could be influenced by the pH, ionic strength, and dissolved organic matter of the water system.

Influence of pH, Humic Acids, and Salts on the Dissipation of Amoxicillin and Azithromycin Under Simulated Sunlight

This work is focused on the study of the dissipation of the antibiotics amoxicillin (AMX) (an amino penicillin) and azithromycin (AZT) (belonging to the macrolide group), performed at a laboratory scale, under simulated sunlight and in the dark, at pH values 4.0, 5.5, and 7.2, and in the presence of humic acids and different inorganic salts. The results indicate that AMX is more affected than AZT by simulated sunlight, with half-lives ranging 7.7–9.9 h for AMX and 250–456 h for AZT. The lowest half-life values were obtained at pH 7.2 for AMX (7.7 h) and at pH 4.0 for AZT (250 h). Regarding the effect of various salts, the presence of NaNO3 causes that C/C0 decreases from 0.6 to 0 under simulated sunlight, having no effect on the dissipation of AMX in the dark. However, in the presence of FeCl3 at concentrations of 500 mg L−1, AMX suffered total dissipation, both under simulated sunlight and in the dark. For AZT the influence was lower, and the salts that caused a higher increase in its dissipation were NaCl (with C/C0 decreasing from 0.5 to 0.2) and CaCl2 (C/C0 decreasing from 0.5 to 0.3). The presence of humic acids caused a slight increase in the dissipation of AMX, both under simulated sunlight and in the dark, a fact that was attributed to the adsorption of the antibiotic onto these organic substances, which, however, caused a more marked increase in the dissipation of AZT (reaching 68%) under simulated sunlight. The overall results of this research can be considered clearly relevant, mainly to determine the fate of AMX and AZT when these antibiotics reach the environment as pollutants, either as regards their exposure to natural sunlight, or in relation to the use of inactivation/photo-degradation systems in decontamination procedures focused on environmental compartments.

Pyroelectrometallurgical processing of bismuth-containing oxides

In this work, we substantiate and develop a general pyroelectrometallurgical technology for processing bismuth dross and oxides (the intermediate products of lead bullion refining by the Betterton-Kroll process) to obtain crude bismuth. The research focuses on bismuth dross (3–5% Bi; 80–85% Pb) remelted at 500–600°С in the presence of NaNO3 and NaOH, as well as the obtained alkaline melt (bismuth oxides, 1–5% Bi; 60–70% Pb). The conducted experiments allowed us to determine optimal parameters of the main steps of processing bismuth oxide, as well as the characteristics of obtained products. Reduction smelting of bismuth oxides at 1150°C (with the addition of sodium carbonate, quartz and fine coke in the amount of 66, 25 and 5% of bismuth oxides mass, respectively) is proposed, leading to bismuth lead formation. Its decoppering is carried out at 350–600°C with 2.0% sulfur (by its weight), added to the melt. We propose to carry out the alkaline treatment of the decoppered Pb-Bi alloy at 500oC in contact with sodium hydroxide, sodium nitrate and sodium chloride, taken in amounts up to 10.2, 8.3 and 1.4% by weight of bismuth lead, respectively. Subsequent electrolysis comprises electrolytic processing of purified Pb-Bi alloy ingots at 550oC. The electrolyte consists of a melt with the following composition, %: NaCl – 7, KCl – 35, PbCl2 – 18 and ZnCl2 – 40. As a result, two end products were obtained by the proposed bismuth oxide processing. The anodic product at the second stage of electrolysis, crude bismuth (yielded 1.1% by the weight of oxides) contains 93.62% Bi and 4.14% Pb, extraction from oxides amounts to 19.0% Bi and 0.1% Pb. About 1.2% Bi and 9.1% Pb of their initial content in the oxides are transferred to the cathodic product containing 0.033% Bi and 97.83% Pb (the yield equalled 5.1% of the oxides).

Scrutiny of variation of process parameters in the extraction of Eu(III) using [THAH]+[DEHP

Europium is classified as a crucial element by the energy department,USA.Its major applications includes use in phosphors and optical fiber owing to the optical as well as luminescent properties it shows.Europium is found in monazite, bastnaesite and xenotime minerals alongwith other lanthanides.Ionic liquids are known to extract neutral and charged species of metal from the feed which mostly depend on the type of metal ion, nature of the complex formed and composition of the aqueous feed. Bifunctional ionic liquid [THAH]+[DEHP]- in kerosene was employed to extract Eu(III) from aqueous nitrate solution in the presence of NaNO3 by solvent extraction.The process parameters like shaking time variation,salt molarity variation,aqueous phase pH variation, influence of diluent and temperature were examined to find conditions for extremum extraction of Eu(III).With increasing the shaking time between both the phases, the extraction percentage gets improved.Temperature displays unfavorable effect on the distribution ratio.Stripping studies show quantitative results for the recovery of Eu(III) from the loaded organic extract.

The Impact of Surface Characteristics of Slightly Soluble Cu (II) and Ni (II) Compounds on their Electroflotation Extraction from Concentrated Solutions of Electrolytes

The impact of concentrated NaCl, NaNO3, and Na2SO4 solutions on the average hydrodynamic diameter and charge of particles of slightly soluble nickel and copper compounds were found to be rather identical. In electrolytes solutions, the average size of the dispersed phases particles decreased from 50–54 µm to 30–45 µm, the electrokinetic potential became more negative (-(2–10) mV). In a result, the removal of slightly soluble nickel and copper compounds decreased from 98% to 94–97% and 30–94%, respectively. Minimal efficiency of electroflotation-based extraction of nickel was observed in the presence of NaNO3. Cationic flocculants promoted increased extraction up to 98–100% regardless of the electrolyte, and decreased electroflotation duration from10–15 min to 5–7 min.

Highly selective recognition of intramolecular parallel G-quadruplex using a chiral supramolecular probe

Owing to their chiral and self-assembly features, chiral supramolecules exhibit superior recognition and catalytic abilities. Here, we construct a chiral H-aggregates based on a cyanine dye, 3,3′-di(3-sulfopropyl)-4,5,4′5′-dibenzo-9-methyl-thiacarbocyanine triethylammonium salt (MeCy), by spontaneous symmetry breaking in the presence of NaNO3. The chiral H-aggregates could specially recognize parallel DNA G-quadruplexes among other DNA types, probably by a three-step process, which comprises the amplified chiral induction, the disassembly of chiral H-aggregates and the binding of the MeCy monomer. The MeCy monomer binding to DNA parallel G-quadruplex led to a lighting-up fluorescence intensity obviously. Chiral supramolecules targeted to DNA G-quadruplex was proposed, and its transformation process was revealed, and thus potentially provided an excellent probe for DNA parallel G-quadruplexes.

Anion Specificity Effects on the Interfacial Aggregation Behavior of Poly(lauryl acrylate)-block-poly(N-isopropylacrylamide).

Aggregation behavior of an amphiphilic diblock copolymer poly(lauryl acrylate)-block-poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PLA-b-PNIPAM) on neutral aqueous subphases with different salt species and salt concentrations, as well as the structures of its Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films, were systematically studied. The presence of NaCl or Na2SO4 in subphases makes PNIPAM chains shrink on the water surface and reduce their solubility underwater. On the contrary, the presence of NaNO3 or NaSCN makes PNIPAM chains more stretched on water and increase their solubility underwater, whose stretch degree and solubility both increase with the increase of salt concentration. Solubility of PNIPAM chains in the above subphase solutions is ranked as NaSCN ≫ NaNO3 > pure H2O > NaCl ≈ Na2SO4, which is almost consistent with the Hofmeister series except for the latter two close cases. All the initial LB films of PLA-b-PNIPAM exhibit tiny isolated circular micelles. Upon compression, the LB films in the case of pure H2O exhibit the dense mixed structures of circular micelles and wormlike aggregates. The formation of wormlike aggregates is due to connection of some adjoining cores, which is less possible in other subphase cases because of the conformation difference of PNIPAM chains.

Adsorption characteristics of copper ion on nanoporous silica

Adsorption by nanoporous media is critically involved in many fundamental geological and geochemical processes including chemical weathering, element migration and enrichment, environmental pollution, etc. Yet, the adsorption behavior of metal ions on nanoporous materials has not been systematically investigated. In this study, MCM-41 material with a monodisperse pore size (4.4 nm) and a large BET specific surface area (839 m2/g) was hydrothermally prepared and used as a model silica adsorbent to study the adsorption characteristics of Cu2+ as a representative metal ion. The Cu2+ adsorption capacity was found to increase with increasing suspension pH in the range from 3 to 5 and to decrease in the presence of NaNO3. At 25 °C, pH = 5, and a solid-to-liquid ratio of 5 g/L, the adsorption capacity was determined to be 0.29 mg/g, which can be converted to a dimensionless partition coefficient of 45, indicating a strong enriching effect of nanoporous silica. The adsorption isotherm and kinetic data were fitted to several commonly used thermodynamic, kinetic, and diffusion models. The adsorption mechanism was also studied by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and synchrotron-based X-ray absorption spectroscopy. The results suggest that Cu2+ ion adsorption is an entropy-driven endothermal process, possibly involving both outer-sphere and inner-sphere complexes.

Electrochemical studies on pitting corrosion of tin in sodium borate solutions containing nitrate ions

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study the electrochemical behavior of Sn electrode in Na2B2O7 solutions in the absence and presence of NaNO3 as a pitting corrosion agent. Design/methodology/approach The electrochemical behavior of Sn electrode was studied by using cyclic voltammetry and potentiodynamic polarization measurements and complemented with scanning electron microscopy examinations. Findings This paper shows that in the absence of NO3 − ions, the anodic polarization of Sn electrode exhibits active/passive transition. Addition of various concentrations of NO3 − anions to the borate solution enhances active anodic dissolution and tends to break down the passive oxide film at a certain pitting potential. The pitting potential, and hence the pitting corrosion resistance, decreases with increasing NO3-ion concentration and temperature but increases with scan rate and repetitive cycling. Addition of CrO42−, WO42− or MoO42− oxyanions to the borate nitrate solution inhibits the pitting corrosion of Sn. Originality/value This is the first study that shows the effect of NO3 − ion as a pitting corrosion agent.

High‐Performance Production of Biosurfactant Rhamnolipid with Nitrogen Feeding

AbstractNitrate is one of the most important factors for fermentative production of rhamnolipid, while it has not yet been conclusively demonstrated that nitrogen limitation or abundance is beneficial for improvement of rhamnolipid production. This study clarified that high concentration of NaNO3 is conducive for high‐performance production of rhamnolipid. An optimum rhamnolipid yield was achieved by 43.3 g L−1 with an initial concentration of NaNO3 equal to 10 g L−1 during the regular fed‐batch fermentation process by Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 9027. Additionally, this rhamnolipid production was further improved to 61.2 g L−1, which was two folds higher than that value obtained during batch fermentation, when the NaNO3 concentration was maintained about 5 g L−1. Furthermore, specific volume productivity of rhamnolipid was improved by over 30% in the presence of NaNO3 at concentration ranging from 5 to 6 g L−1 during sequential fed‐batch fermentation, resulting a high value of 0.4 and 0.59 g L−1 h−1 within one batch of sequential fed‐batch fermentation for a period of 17 days by P. aeruginosa ATCC 9027 and PAO1, respectively. It seems that sustaining high‐concentration NaNO3 during fed‐batch fermentation is advantageous for high‐performance production of rhamnolipid.

Solvent extraction of dysprosium with Cyanex 923

ABSTRACTThe solvent extraction of dysprosium from an aqueous solution containing 1 g L−1 Dy and 0.2 M NaNO3 by Cyanex 923 was carried out. From some preliminary experiments, it was observed that the extraction of Dy in the presence of NaNO3 was more than that in the presence of NaCl and Na2SO4. The influence of equilibration time, equilibrium pH, extractant concentration, temperature, salt concentration and stripping agents were investigated. The McCabe–Thiele diagrams for extraction and stripping were constructed with 0.2 M Cyanex 923 and 0.1% sulphuric acid, respectively. The extraction of Dy was 98.4% in three countercurrent stages at pH 1.5 and A:O phase ratio of 2:1. The loaded organic was stripped with HCl, HNO3 and H2SO4 and the stripping efficiencies of these acids followed the trend HCl < HNO3 < H2SO4. The McCabe–Thiele diagram for stripping with H2SO4 showed two stages at A:O ratio of 2:3 for quantitative stripping. The species extracted to the organic phase was determined to be . The change in enthalpy (ΔH), entropy (ΔS) and free energy change (ΔG) were calculated to be –45.86 kJ mol−1, −120.63 J mol−1 K−1 and 33.58 to −39.82 kJ mol−1, respectively. Also, the synergistic effect of D2EHPA, Cyanex 272 and PC88A with Cyanex 923 was investigated.

Isolation, characterization, and optimization of biosurfactant production by an oil-degrading Acinetobacter junii B6 isolated from an Iranian oil excavation site

An enrichment program for hydrocarbon-utilizing bacteria capable of biosurfactant production isolated from soil samples was carried out on mineral salt medium supplemented with Iranian light crude oil (ILCO, 1%). The most promising isolate was identified as Acinetobacter junii B6 using 16S rDNA sequencing and biochemical characterization. Time course profile of biosurfactant production using A. junii B6 showed surface tension reduction in the culture broth to 45 mN/m after 48 h incubation and a 51% emulsification of ILCO. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis of A. junii B6 showed the tendency of bacterial cells to adhere to each other and to the oil droplets. Application of two-level fractional factorial design showed that surface tension of culture broth was maximally reduced to 38 mN/m in the presence of NaNO3 (2 g/L), ILCO (5%), temperature of 25 °C, aeration rate of 300 rpm, and inoculum size of 2%. GC-MS analysis of the culture broth showed the ability of A. junii B6 to degrade most of the alkanes' components of ILCO when used as sole carbon source. Both strain and product has potential applications in various oil industries including bioremediation and enhanced oil recovery.

CONTROLLED GROWTH OF IRON OXIDE MAGNETIC NANOPARTICLES VIA CO-PRECIPITATION METHOD AND NaNO3 ADDITION

Size controlled magnetic nanoparticle (MNPs) of iron oxide were prepared in the presence of NaNO3 via co-precipitation method followed by HNO3 peptizing according to Massart’s method. The MNPs size were reduced by addition of NaNO3 in varied molarity and at different stage of process. As an end product, stable water-base colloids were formed. XRD pattern analysis using Rietveld method confirmed Fe3O4/g-Fe2O3 phase formation with nanoscale crystallite size. This crystallite size significantly decrease with NaNO3 addition from 12 nm to smaller than 8 nm, and give end-result of decreasing magnetization as measured by VSM. Langevin fitting of magnetic hysteresis curve also revealed the magnetic core size of nearly the same behaviour. TEM results show bigger value for single magnetic nanoparticle of > 10 nm and < 10 nm for MNPs without and with NaNO 3 addition, respectively. However, PSA measurement still trace a low nanoparticle agglomeration of ~ 20 nm, even after surface peptization using HNO3. A possible mechanism is proposed to explain these characteristics formation especially of the MNP’s size.

Effect of chloride and nitrate salts on Hg(II) sorption by raw and pyrolyzed malt spent rootlets

AbstractBACKGROUNDMercury is considered to be one of the most harmful metals for human health and the environment. Biomass based materials and the corresponding biochars show promising potential as Hg(II) sorbents. Sorption is an effective process to remove Hg(II) from polluted waters, and is mainly affected by water chemistry. The sorption efficiency of malt spent rootlets and their biochar was evaluated at various ionic strength levels with two different salts, NaCl and NaNO3.RESULTSFor both materials, the salts were added at concentrations of 1, 0.5, 0.1, 0.01, and 0.001 mol L−1. At pH 5, Hg(II) removal was not significantly affected by the presence of NaNO3. High Hg(II) removal was obtained even at high NaNO3 concentrations; 53% at 1 mol L−1 NaNO3. A significant decrease of Hg(II) sorption was observed with the increase of NaCl concentration. Hg(II) removal was 55% and 20% at 1 mmol L−1 and 1 mol L−1 NaCl, respectively.CONCLUSIONSThe differences observed in salinity effect can be related to the different counter ions present in the salts. Low Cl− or NO3− concentrations did not interfere strongly with mercury sorption, but excess Cl− formed mercury species with negative charge, which demonstrated lower sorption. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry

Visualising the molecular alteration of the calcite (104) - water interface by sodium nitrate.

The reactivity of calcite, one of the most abundant minerals in the earth’s crust, is determined by the molecular details of its interface with the contacting solution. Recently, it has been found that trace concentrations of NaNO3 severely affect calcite’s (104) surface and its reactivity. Here we combine molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, X-ray reflectivity (XR) and in situ atomic force microscopy (AFM) to probe the calcite (104) – water interface in the presence of NaNO3. Simulations reveal density profiles of different ions near calcite’s surface, with NO3− able to reach closer to the surface than CO32− and in higher concentrations. Reflectivity measurements show a structural destabilisation of the (104) surfaces’ topmost atomic layers in NaNO3 bearing solution, with distorted rotation angles of the carbonate groups and substantial displacement of the lattice ions. Nanoscale AFM results confirm the alteration of crystallographic characteristics, and the ability of dissolved NaNO3 to modify the structure of interfacial water was observed by AFM force spectroscopy. Our experiments and simulations consistently evidence a dramatic deterioration of the crystals’ surface, with potentially important implications for geological and industrial processes.

Molten salt synthesis of doped nanocrystalline ZnO powders and applications in varistor ceramics

The doped nanocrystalline ZnO powders were synthesized with the aid of NaNO3–KNO3 eutectic instead of any organic additives. The as-synthesized samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry, X-ray fluorescence, electronic differential system and scanning electron microscopy. Spherical doped nanocrystalline ZnO powders with particle size of about 20–37 nm were easily obtained in the presence of NaNO3–KNO3 eutectic. The results indicated that NaNO3–KNO3 eutectic, which acted as solvent as medium, was in favor of the formation of well-dispersed doped ZnO nanocrystals. The ZnO varistor sintered at 1100 °C for 2 h in air have a density of 5.43 g/cm3 corresponding to 96.9 % of its theoretical density, with breakdown voltage of 5893 V/cm and nonlinear coefficient of 26.6. The experimental results showed the advantage of addition of the molten salt for avoiding hard agglomeration and improving electrical performance of the varistors.

Physico-chemical studies in the removal of Sr(II) from aqueous solutions using activated sericite

Sericite, a mica based natural clay, was annealed at 800 °C for 4 h followed by acid activation using 3.0 mol/L of HCl at 100 °C in order to obtain activated sericite (AS). The activation of sericite causes a significant increase in specific surface area. Further, SEM images of the AS showed a disordered and heterogeneous surface structure with mesopores on its surface whereas the pristine sericite possessed a compact layered structure. The materials were further employed in the removal of Sr(II) from aqueous solutions in a batch reactor system. Removal of Sr(II) was studied as a function of pH, concentration of adsorbate, contact time, background electrolyte concentrations and dose of adsorbents using pristine sericite and AS. The removal of Sr(II) was favoured increasing the pH of the solution and the extent of Sr(II) removal was increased with increasing the sorbate concentration. Equilibrium sorption data obtained with pristine sericite were fitted well to Langmuir adsorption isotherm whereas the sorption data collected using AS better fitted to the Freundlich adsorption isotherm. The time dependence sorption data showed that the uptake of Sr(II) was very rapid and an apparent sorption equilibrium was achieved within 30 min and 60 min of contact for sericite and AS, respectively. The kinetic data were modelled to the pseudo-first order and pseudo-second order rate kinetics and sorption capacities as well as rate constants were evaluated. Increase in background electrolyte concentrations NaNO3 (0.001–0.1 mol/L) indicated that the presence of NaNO3 caused to decrease the percent removal of Sr(II) by sericite and AS. Furthermore, fixed-bed column reactor operations were performed to obtain the breakthrough data. The breakthrough data were fitted well to the non-linear Thomas equation. Therefore, the present study suggested that AS can be adequately applied for the removal of Sr(II) from the aquatic environment.

Impact of nitrogen regime on fatty acid profiles of Desmodesmus quadricaudatus and Chlorella sp. and ability to produce biofuel

Abstract Microalgae have emerged as one of the most promising sources for fatty acid production. Since the various fatty acid profiles (chain length, degree of unsaturation, and branching of the chain) of the different sources influence biodiesel fuel properties, it is important to possess data on how the presence of NaNO3 as nitrogen source can influence the profile of produced fatty acids from algae. The fatty acid profiles of Desmodesmus quadricaudatus and Chlorella sp. were detected in pure batch cultures experiments. BG-11 nitrogen free medium and the medium contained 1.5 g NaNO3 l−1 were used in this investigation. At late stationary growth phase in nitrogen free medium, Chlorella sp. produced 58.39% saturated fatty acids and 41.60% unsaturated fatty acids. While in medium contained 1.5 g NaNO3 l−1Chlorella sp. produced 62.08% saturated fatty acids and 37.92% unsaturated fatty acids. In nitrogen free medium D. quadricaudatus produced 66.92% saturated fatty acids and 33.07% unsaturated fatty acids. W...

Efficient separation of thorium from rare earths with a hydrogen-bonded oligoaramide extractant in highly acidic media

A novel design based on condensation of a simple bifunctional monomer led to hydrogen-bonded oligoaramide extractant 1 that could segregate Th(IV) from rare earths(III) [REs(III)] and U(VI) under strongly acidic conditions in a highly efficient and selective fashion by solvent extraction process. The extractant demonstrated a high extractability of 94.5–99.0 % and selectivity for extraction of Th(IV) from REs in 2.0–6.0 M HNO3. Particularly, REs were extracted only in <9 % in a simulated multi-component mixture in 4.0 M HNO3, which contrasts sharply with 88 % extraction of Th(IV). The presence of NaNO3 as the salting-out agent significantly improved the extraction selectivity of Th(IV).